Diamond Open Access Publishing in Africa

By /

Iryna Kuchma, the manager of EIFL Open Access Programme (EIFL-OA), was a guest in a recent webinar, where she was joined by other EIFL team members and librarians from various institutions across Africa. During this session, we delved into the findings of EIFL’s latest report, ‘Landscape of No-Fee Open Access Publishing in Africa’. This report provides a comprehensive overview of open-access (OA) journals across Africa that operate without charging fees to authors or readers, commonly referred to as Diamond OA journals.

Watch the recording

The slides are available at https://africarxiv.ubuntunet.net/handle/1/1632

Session summary

The webinar on “Diamond Open Access Publishing in Africa” provided a comprehensive overview of the current landscape, challenges, and opportunities for Diamond OA journals on the continent. Diamond Open Access is characterised by free access for both readers and authors, offering a highly equitable publishing model. The session revealed significant financial sustainability issues, as many African Diamond OA journals operate with little or no budget, relying heavily on voluntary staff and sporadic institutional in-kind support such as office space, editorial time from faculty, and internet access. While helpful, these contributions are not a substitute for dedicated funding and do not guarantee consistent quality or growth.

Country differences were highlighted; nations like South Africa, with robust research policies, provide more substantial support and structured environments, whereas journals in countries lacking such infrastructure face persistent challenges in visibility and planning. Notably, collaborations among journals—particularly in regions such as West Africa—are enhancing resource sharing, editorial training, and technological infrastructure, resulting in greater resilience and increased journal visibility.

The key strategies identified for advancing the Diamond OA model include mobilising public funding, embedding OA journals in national research systems, improving metadata standards, and leveraging platforms like DOAJ and Crossref to raise discoverability. Sustainable funding, technological infrastructure, policy support, and editorial development remain primary needs, which can be addressed through combined efforts by governments, institutions, and international organizations. The report stresses the necessity for standardised and well-supported hosting platforms, open-source solutions, and comprehensive training for administrative staff. For African researchers and institutions, embracing these insights can help drive fairer access, stronger journals, and a more vibrant scholarly communication ecosystem in Africa.

Related resources

Speakers’ profiles

Iryna Kuchma

Iryna Kuchma has been managing the EIFL Open Access Programme (EIFL-OA) since 2008. Working in collaboration with libraries and library consortia in more than 60 countries in Africa, Asia, and Europe, she advocates for open access to research results, facilitates the development and implementation of open science policies and infrastructures, and provides support and training. Iryna sits on the boards of Confederation of Open Access Repositories (COAR), the Global Sustainability Coalition for Open Science Services (SCOSS) and the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (NDLTD). She is an Associate Editor for the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), and a member of the DOAJ Council. In 2013, Iryna received the Electronic Publishing Trust (EPT) for Development Annual Award, in recognition of her efforts in the furtherance of open access to scholarly publications.

Linkedin: /irynakuchma/
ORCID: 0000-0002-2064-3439

Blessing Chiparausha

Blessing Chiparausha is University Librarian at Bindura University of Science Education, Zimbabwe. He holds a PhD in Information Science from the University of South Africa. He has published refereed journal articles, book chapters, and conference papers on the use of information and communication technologies in academic libraries, especially the use of social media, free and open-source software, and related digital applications.

Linkedin: /blessing-chiparausha/
ORCID: 0000-0002-0583-6945

Dr. Richard Bruce Lamptey

Richard Bruce Lamptey holds a PhD (Information Science) from the University of South Africa, South Africa, MPhil (Science and Technology  Studies) from Stellenbosch University, South Africa, MA (Information Services Management) from London Metropolitan University, UK and Diploma (Library and Information Studies) from the University of Ghana. He is very passionate about knowledge sharing and also interested in equity in scholarly communications and research, alternative metrics, grey literature and open access.

Richard is the  Librarian of the College of Science Library and a Deputy Librarian in the KNUST Library System. He is knowledgeable in digital Libraries, Data Curation, Digital Repositories and Information Management as well as Open Access / Open Data issues. Very much results-driven, go-getter, follow transformational leadership principles. He provides advanced training for both Lecturers and Students and supports raising awareness of library resources in KNUST. (Literature Search, Avoiding predatory journal publishing, Digital Literacy, Plagiarism, Institutional Repositories, Open Access and Open Science)

Bruce Lamptey has supported national and institutional open access awareness-raising and advocacy workshops that have resulted in a number of open access repositories in the country (which continues to grow). Through his work, the first open access mandate in the country was introduced by Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. He is the EIFL Coordinator – Ghana.

Linkedin: /Richard Bruce Lamptey/
ORCID: 0000-0002-0583-6945

Milica Ševkušić

Milica Ševkušić is a Project Coordinator for the EIFL Open Access Programme and a librarian at the Institute of Technical Sciences of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts. In the capacity of the EIFL-Open Access Programme Country Coordinator she has been supporting Open Access journals in Serbia since 2014. Her professional interests focus on Open Science, library services aimed at supporting research activities, training in academic services and tools, support to Open Access journals, information literacy and research ethics. 

Linkedin: /Milica Ševkušićn/
ORCID:0000-0002-2888-6611

Ina Smith

Ina Smith is a leading advocate for open science and open access in Africa, with over 20 years of experience in the field. She holds advanced degrees in Computer Integrated Education and Library Science from the University of Pretoria. Ina has played key roles at the University of Pretoria and Stellenbosch University, advancing institutional repositories and open publishing platforms like UPSpace, SUNScholar, and SUNJournals.

Since 2014, she has served as Planning Manager at the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), leading major initiatives such as the African Open Science landscape study, the African Scientists Directory, and the development of national open science policies. Ina is a DOAJ Ambassador for Southern Africa and was instrumental in integrating DOAJ into South Africa’s research outputs policy.

Recognized with awards such as LIASA Librarian of the Year (2016), Ina is known for her innovative use of IT and new technologies, driving greater accessibility and collaboration in African research communities.

Linkedin: /smith-ina/
Orcid: 0000-0002-9710-3668

About the webinar series

This webinar was co-organized by UbuntuNet Alliance and Access 2 Perspectives as part of the ORCID Global Participation Program.

ORCID is the persistent identifier for researchers to share their accomplishments (research articles, data, etc with funding agencies, publishers, data repositories, and other research workflows.

AfricArXiv is a community-led digital archive for African research communication. By enhancing the visibility of African research, we enable discoverability and collaboration opportunities for African scientists on the continent as well as globally.

Scroll to Top